Winter White Soup-er Bowl

Yesterday, I may have given the impression that I’ve been eating nothing other than toast.

This isn’t entirely true. I’ve gone to a few nice restaurant meals, which have been moderately well balanced (ie there has been the omnipresent arugula salad). But for the most part, I’ve been eating wheat and not much else. Like, I have felt proud of myself the few times I’ve managed to wrench open a jar of Newman’s Own Sockarooni sauce to pour on my pasta because of how it contains vegetables. Fortunately, I am one of the few gluten-tolerant people left in America today. But that’s no excuse.

So last night, I decided to make soup with some odds and ends. And here’s the thing: This might be the most impressive thing I’ve ever invented. (That’s my objective analysis.) I’m really proud of it, possibly because I didn’t start out to cook something so intensely delicious. It’s creamy, white and unexpectedly lemony. Also? It doesn’t have wheat. Or dairy products. And it’s nutritious and filling and easy. And unlike almost everything else I’ve ever cooked in my life, it’s not the least bit spicy.

So here it is friends, the vegan, gluten-free

Winter White Soup-er Bowl

Delicious

I used

A third of a cup of olive oil

A white onion, chopped

A leek, chopped (just the white part, and you really can’t clean a leek too much)

Two potatoes, carefully peeled and chopped

Two celery stalks, chopped

One medium-sized head of cauliflower, just the florets

Four garlic cloves, peeled and left whole

Several tablespoons of fresh thyme and tarragon

Water or vegetable stock

The juice and zest of three lemons

Lots of salt

Finally chopped chives, if you like a little garnish

(I would also be interested in trying this again with a parsnip, or maybe even a turnip, in place of one of the potatoes. It would change the flavor, but would probably be delicious, as well as in keeping with the theme of white winter vegetables.)

Here’s what I did
I heated the olive oil (you could use some butter too) in a large pot and added the onion, cooking it on medium-low while I chopped the other things. Then I added the potatoes, celery and leeks and let them cook on medium for about ten minutes, before adding the cauliflower and garlic. After about five minutes, I added the herbs, quite a bit of salt (several tablespoons) and water (you can use stock if you really want, but it’s totally not necessary). Just fill the pot until the water covers everything by about an inch and a half. Cover and simmer for about twenty-five minutes, until everything is pretty tender, but not squishy.

Meanwhile, put about a third of the lemon juice and zest in a blender or food processor. When the veggies are cooked, add a portion of the broth and chunks to the blender and puree thoroughly. Be careful when you take the lid off; there might be a boiling hot splatter! Take a little taste. Does it need more salt? (It probably does.) Finish pureeing the rest, adding salt if need be. Is it really thick and gloopy? Add more water. Reheat everything on the stove and serve with some chives on top, which mostly just make the creamy white soup look more luscious.

With our soup, we drank bottles of Full Sail IPA, which I was shocked to find in my crappy corner grocery store. There is nothing like the surprise of seeing a friendly familiar beer label from 3000 miles away. So comforting.

If you enjoy pureeing soup and other things and also have a little one, I highly recommend that you visit Living Outside the Jar, a blog that was just started by a high school buddy who makes delicious and nutritious grub for her baby. There are a lot of good inspirations here, even for grown-up palates.

Mmm, this sounds so delicious! The addition of lemon is truly inspired. I think I will give it a whirl sometime this week, aided by my trusty immersion blender. This is truly the kitchen implement that has most changed my life for the better (however, I have never had a crock pot). Before acquiring this nearly magical device I would never make soups like this, because I hated dealing with the blender in such large, hot, messy batches.

For several reasons, you had me at “unexpectedly lemony.” I am so going to try this soon. And it will give me an excuse to break out and christen my new Cuisinart! My brother got an immersion blender for Christmas and has said the same thing as Erin – I’ll have to share this recipe with him.

Yes! Lemony! I think you can safely expect to read very soon on this site a one-act play called “The Seahorses of Warwickshire Abbey,” already in development.

I have never had an immersion blender and had always made due with the mess of a normal one. However, I recently became the extremely lucky recipient of one of these amazing mamas, whose design is so sleek that it’s as easy to clean as a bowl. http://willitblend.com/videos.aspx?type=unsafe&video=oldspice